"It's not good for you to lie like that."
Raizen-san said it with the kind of smile that meant trouble, then his body twisted like chakra smoke and slipped straight through the barrier. Mito blinked, startled, spinning to escape, only to slam headfirst into someone's chest.
"Eh—!"
She lost her balance. Raizen's hand shot out, catching her by the waist, pulling her into him before she could hit the ground.
Warm, safe, embarrassing.
Her face went red immediately.
She shoved him away like he'd committed a war crime. "Why are you guys always bullying girls!"
Raizen didn't bother answering. His Mangekyō faded, and the Uzumaki shinobi trapped in the illusion snapped back to reality.
"...Huh?"
They stared at him, bewildered and ready to jump him, but Mito stepped in fast.
"Uncle Hidemitsu, this is Amamiya Raizen. I misidentified him earlier!"
"What?"
Uzumaki Hidemitsu looked like someone just told him the ocean was on fire. The Uzumaki had freakishly good chakra perception, and as the princess of the clan, Mito's senses were practically divine. He'd trusted her judgment completely.
Now she said she was wrong.
His eyebrows twitched. He glanced at Raizen, then at Mito, and released a single, fatherly sigh.
"So Mito has finally grown up."
"U-Uncle Hidemitsu! Don't say weird things!"
Her whole face turned cherry-red.
Hidemitsu smirked, dismissed the barrier, and waved Raizen's Anbu through.
"My apologies, Amamiya-sama. A misunderstanding. This way, please."
Raizen just nodded, stepping forward with mild annoyance still hanging off him like fog.
Mito walked beside him, clearly fuming but unable to stop herself. "Hey."
"What now?"
"I heard you awakened the Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan. Those eyes you used earlier—were those really Sharingan? But you're not Uchiha. Are you maybe their secret love child?"
Raizen flicked her forehead without mercy. "Stop talking nonsense."
"Then how do you have Sharingan?" she pressed, eyes glowing with curiosity.
"Not stolen. Not snatched. That's all you need to know."
"Oh! So you killed an Uchiha and took his eyes!"
She gasped, delighted by her own terrible theory. Raizen's eyebrow twitched. He abandoned the conversation entirely, which only made her more irritated.
They bickered the whole walk to the heart of Uzushio Village, where the clan's main building rose above the sea breeze. The Uzumaki had clearly already sent word ahead, because the patriarch was waiting at the entrance.
Uzumaki Skylark, the clan head, brightened the moment he saw Raizen.
"So this is Amamiya Raizen, the patriarch of the Amamiya clan. Such a young hero."
Raizen returned the courtesy. "I've long admired the strength of the Uzumaki clan, Patriarch Uzumaki."
They exchanged formal greetings and stepped inside, only for Skylark to suddenly snap toward his daughter.
"Mito, we have an important guest. Don't loiter here."
"Father…"
She tried to protest, but the doorway guards blocked her with stiff politeness, clearly used to Mito ignoring rules. She stuck out her tongue at her father and stormed off.
Inside, Raizen and Patriarch Skylark shared tea. No unnecessary pleasantries, no wasted motions. Warring States hospitality was blunt and efficient.
After a short exchange, Skylark finally asked, "What brings the head of the Amamiya clan to Uzushio?"
Raizen gathered his thoughts, then spoke plainly. "The Konoha Alliance has been formed. Our divisions are taking shape, but we still lack one crucial unit: a sealing corps. So I'm here to issue an official employment request. I want the Uzumaki clan to teach our alliance the basics of sealing techniques."
Skylark didn't move. Didn't even blink.
During this era, families guarded their jutsu like treasure buried under blood. No clan just… handed over techniques, and sealing arts were the Uzumaki's lifeline.
Teaching them to outsiders meant vulnerability.
Skylark leaned back, thoughtful. "An… unusual request."
He eyed Raizen the way a hawk watched a wolf near its nest.
The fact Raizen wasn't asking for free cooperation but offering it as a formal mission meant this wasn't arrogance. It was negotiation.
And Raizen had come in person.
Skylark folded his hands, settling into deep consideration.
"What compensation," he finally asked, "does the Amamiya patriarch offer… to make such a dangerous request worth accepting?"